Juggling Books

Are you a serial reader or do you juggle a pile of books reading a bit of this and that, whatever strikes your mood?

This is my current reading list.  Why so many?

Some books are best read in small nibbles - either because they are intense, emotional, or thought provoking and a little goes a long way.  (Magic Hour)

Some books aren't interesting enough to read for long periods of time but short bursts while waiting for something else provide a nice distraction.  (Salting Roses)

Some books are so good I want to gobble them up and at the same time I don't want them to end so I force myself to read slowly to draw out the pleasure as long as possible.  (The Winter Sea)




But there always comes a tipping point - the chapter where I simply MUST know what happens next and there is no choice but to sit and read to the end! (Red Rising -today)

Sometimes I want adventure, some times comfort.  Sometimes I want to learn and sometimes to escape.  Sometimes a little laughter is the cure and sometimes crying for someone else's pain helps ease my own.  Somewhere in the pile is a book to suit the need of the moment.

The Storyteller

Some people are writers and some....are storytellers.

A fantastic evening.  Neil Gaiman talked about his new book, Terry Pratchett, read stories, told stories, and answered a billion questions.  We would have sat there for two more hours enraptured.

Myth Busting E-Readers

E-Readers:  People either love them or hate them  which makes me sad because I don't see why it has to be all one or all the other.

Myth:  You can tell a lot about a person from looking at their book shelves; you can't tell anything about them from an E-reader.

Au contraire mon ami!  Look at mine.  Right away you know my favorite color from the faux leather cover.  You also know I have a practical (i.e. cheap) side since I didn't go for a designer cover that cost as much as the device.  Open the cover and the skel-animal sticker will show you my secret goth side.  Pull the papers out of the pockets and you might find a Disney post card, a grocery list, library information.  Turn it on and the title list will show you just how eclectic my taste are.  Also notice, the cover stands instead of opening like a book which should tell you that I don't see any reason meals should interrupt a good story!  Just from looking at my Kindle, you already know a lot about me.

Myth:  E-readers mean the death of real books and book sales.  I bet everyone said that about audio books and libraries and used book stores.  I do not know a single person who stopped buying real books once they got an E-reader.  If anything, we buy MORE books.  I love real books, the smell, the weight, the beautiful covers, how they look on the shelf.  I will always prefer to buy the real hardback book by my favorite author to have forever and read over and over.  Also, please note, most of the books I get on my kindle are not FREE....I still buy them.  Buying an e-book is still buying a book.  Yes they are less expensive than the real book but they should be.  Books I buy on my Kindle were books I was not going to buy anyway.  They are new books by unknown authors that I would probably get from the library or the used books store, if at all.  As far as I can see everybody wins here.

A few other points in favor of E-readers:
When my suitcase is at the maximum weight limit and I know I will need more than one book for the trip, I can solve the dilemma by simply putting my Kindle in my carry on.  I don't have to worry if four books are too heavy, I can take 1500 with me.
When I am out of reading material or not in the mood for the choices I have, I can get a new book with a single click in a matter of seconds.  No matter if it is in the middle of the night, or a weekend, or a holiday; the internet store is always open and with no delivery fee or waiting for shipping.
I can highlight or take notes without defacing the actual pages and I can easily search and find them all later.

I want my real books and my e-books.  Please don't make me choose.  I think this is called having your cake and eating it too!

Cure for January Blahs

The Magicians by Lev Grossman

One of the reviews said this book was 'grown up Harry Potter'.  Maybe, if being grown up means drinking, swearing, and having sex.  I think it is more 'Harry Potter goes to college'.  It is also a bit of Narnia in a disillusioned way with a scattering of Tolkien like wisdom.  It is all of these and none of these.  It is it's own thing.  It is also a great deal about being human and the pursuit of happiness which leads to both bliss and despair.   It is about waking up and discovering that Magic is real, you can learn it in school, you can travel to Narnia or Middle Earth and worlds unimagined but who you are goes with you and you always have to deal with that.

“Glory has its price,” Penny said.  “Did you not know that, before you sought it?”

Paper and Ink

Defenders of real books over e-readers will often say they love the way books smell....

....and it is true, books have a scents that no digital file can replicate......

A brand new book is wide awake with scent of crisp paper and pungent ink.  For some, the first act of opening a new book is to bury one's nose in the pages and breathe even before a single word has been read.

Old books convey myriad scents - dust, mold, tobacco,  wood smoke, perfume, potpourri, wax, furniture polish.....

The pages of my own books often feature tea stains, chocolate smudges, and the occasional drop of blood so who knows what more discerning noses could detect.


Any cat or dog could tell you that library books are the most delectable of all; a universe of scents from other houses, other people, other pets all rubbing shoulders with other books each carrying their own olfactory histories.  And yes, as soon as I bring a library book into the house, the first thing the cats do is sniff, sniff, sniff.

The Library

I recently saw this quote on Twitter from Neil Gaiman:  "Don't ever apologize to an author for buying something in paperback, or taking it out from a library (that's what they're for. Use your library.) Don't apologize to this author for buying books second hand, or getting them from Bookcrossing or borrowing a friend's copy.  What's important to me is that people read the books and enjoy them, and that, at some point in there, the book was bought by someone.  And that people who like things, tell other people.  The most important thing is that people read..."

Thanks for the reminder.  I love buying new books, especially beautiful hardback books.  I love the hunt for a cheap treasure in the dusty stacks of a used book store.  I love the ease with which I can have an e-book on my kindle with one click, any time, day or night.But I can't afford to buy every single book that looks interesting.  I have to make choices.

When I was little, books were maybe bought at Christmas or Birthdays or Scholastic Fair Day.  The mall with the one bookstore was far away.  There were no used bookstores.  We went to the library all the time.  I remember checking out more books than I could carry and reading (well being read to) them all as soon as we got home.

As a teenager, the mall was closer but books were too expensive for my part time job.  I would still go to the library and check out the limit on each visit.  I also did a brisk business with the used book store buying and trading.

This morning I woke up and it was raining.  A perfect day to cuddle with a kitty, a cup of tea and a book.  I have books waiting patiently on my shelves, in my bed, on the nightstand and the end table, and on my Kindle.  But I wanted something different and a seed of memory had been planted and watered.  So I drove to The Library, renewed my expired card, spent a couple of hours browsing, and checked out an armful of books.

Chestnut Street

The only thing better than hearing the voice of an old friend, is hearing a voice you thought you would never hear again.

One last batch of stories like a midnight snack to fill a craving I didn't know I had.